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Experts determine the assembly of proteins with specialized protein needles

Protein assembly is considered to be an essential factor for the development of ordered biological structures, but how about engineering one.

10 Jan 2022

Scientists test the accuracy of enzymes that copy DNA under weightlessness

Researchers at Queen’s University boarded a modified Falcon 20 aircraft at Ottawa airport on May 22nd, 2019 as part of a scheduled “vomit comet” flight. In this mode of flight, the plane repeatedly climbs in a steep parabola to 8 km, alternating with a freefall descent.

2 Dec 2021

Improving our Understanding of Bacterial Membranes

We speak to Professor Bart Hoogenboom and Georgina Benn about current research using technology to create the sharpest images of living bacteria ever recorded.

12 Nov 2021

Simultaneously Measuring 7,000 Proteins: Groundbreaking Proteomics from SomaLogic

In this interview, we speak to Roy Smythe, CEO of SomaLogic, about their groundbreaking proteomics technology that can simultaneously measure 7,000 proteins.

From SomaLogic 4 Nov 2021

Scientists use DNA to create what may be the world's tiniest ruler for measuring proteins

As scientists have probed the mysteries of life down to smaller and smaller scales, they have invented tools to help them understand what they observe.

22 Oct 2021

Study pinpoints the mutational hotspots in DNA

Recent research at the University of Bath reveals that tangles in unwound DNA can develop mutational hotspots in the genomes of bacteria.

21 Oct 2021

Researchers use cryo-electron microscopy to resolve 3D structure of protein nanoparticle

Nanoparticles and nanocages are attractive materials that may be applied in color agents, catalysts, and drug delivery.

6 Oct 2021

Supercoiling and looping can transmit mechanical stress along the DNA backbone, shows study

When people think of DNA, they visualize a string-like double helix structure. In reality, the DNA double helix in cells is supercoiled and constrained into loops. This supercoiling and looping are known to influence every aspect of DNA activity, but how this happens has not been clear.

28 Sep 2021

Structural parameters of phosphatidylglycerol-DNA complex revealed

An interaction of DNA with lipids is of great interest because of their functions. As fatty acids and lipids can specifically bind to nucleic acids forming a code sequence of the genomic DNA, it is important to study the interaction of the oligonucleotide DNA (dA)20-(dT)20 with phosphatidylglycerol by the molecular dynamics method.

24 Sep 2021

Programmable DNA-based microfluidic chip for performing complex mathematical calculations

The term 'DNA' immediately calls to mind the double-stranded helix that contains all our genetic information. But the individual units of its two strands are pairs of molecules bonded with each other in a selective, complementary fashion.

15 Sep 2021

Study unravels the DNA repair mechanism by enzymes

A new study by researchers from the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology in the Republic of Korea has revealed the mechanism of DNA repair by enzymes exonuclease III and polymerase I by utilizing single molecule fluorescence resonance energy transfer (smFRET)-enabled dynamic observation.

14 Sep 2021

Study uncovers mechanism where two transcription factors stabilize each other’s binding to DNA

Researchers have discovered an exclusive mechanism through which two transcription factors stabilize each other’s binding to DNA in fission yeast.

14 Sep 2021

Researchers identify new technique to measure DNA torsional stiffness

Cornell researchers have identified a new way to measure DNA torsional stiffness – how much resistance the helix offers when twisted – information that can potentially shed light on how cells work.

16 Aug 2021

Researchers develop DNA-based switching circuits

The myriad processes occurring in biological cells may seem unbelievably complex at first glance. And yet, in principle, they are merely a logical succession of events, and could even be used to form digital circuits.

4 Jun 2021

“Topologically tunable” DNA-based material has potential applications in drug delivery, tissue regeneration

DNA is usually idealized as the “molecule of life,” but it is also a highly advanced polymer that can be used for cutting-edge materials. Apart from storing information, other interesting aspects of DNA are its topological and geometrical properties, like super-coiling and knotting.

31 May 2021

Researchers identify the biosynthesis mechanism of new DNA nucleobases

DNA is made up of nucleobases, which are depicted by the letters G, A, T, and C. They are the foundation of the genetic code.

13 May 2021

Supercoiling characteristic of DNA's structure controls gene expression, research shows

The two meters of -stretched- DNA contained in human cells are continuously twisting and untwisting to give access to genetic information: when a gene is expressed to generate a protein, the two strands of DNA are separated to give access to all the machinery necessary for this expression, resulting in an excessive accumulation of coiling that needs to be resolved later.

10 May 2021

Research uncovers how antibiotics target bacterial RNA Polymerase to inhibit gene transcription

The emergence and spread of new forms of resistance remains a concern that urgently demand new antibiotics. Transcription is a vital process in bacterial cell, where genetic information in DNA is transcribed to RNA for the translation of proteins that perform cellular function.

6 May 2021

“Chemical nose” smells vital variations in unusual folding of DNA structures

Small variations in the structure of DNA have been related to breast cancer and other diseases, but they have been incredibly hard to find so far.